Flashing



July 5, 1938, J. BLACHER FLASHING Filed Jan. so, 1957 Patented July 5, 1938 PATENT OFFICE- FLASHING Joseph Blacher, Boston, Application January so, 1937, Serial 123,174

. {The present invention relates generally tosheet me al ,fiashin a mo e spec fica o t a elassgofflashingsknown as through flashings, and it comprehends a construction designed to be tfes irely mai t ined i e a em w h material supporting it and with the material suppoited it .More particular y th sen i v tio relatests she me s sfi s m s of co psrcr al an z d enn other rust 19 sisti e mate wh e n r ose zo tally between courses of masonry in building WaIIsbemgembedded inthe cementor mortar ioints between the saidcourses of masonry, such flashings being in lengths and in widths equal to,

U orin slight, excess of, the lengths and the widths ofthe walls and being adapted to prevent downward seepage .of water through the cement or mortarjoints. i

p ThEzDI'GSQIItiHVGHtiOIl is embodied ina flashing havingsubstantially parallel continuous drainagelchannelsspaced apart at sensible distances, between eachadiacent pair of which is disposed, substantially parallel to the continuous drainage channelsdiscontinuous inverted channels in series, the continuous drainage channels and the discontinuous inverted channels being preferably less wide at bottom than at mouth. Since the cross sections of such channels resemble trapezoids minus the longer parallel sides, such channels will hereinafter be termed channels trapezoidal in cross section. a a

The principal object of the present invention is to provide a flashing possessing regions designed to effect drainage in a preferential manner.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a flashing whose construction insures the maintenance of a drainage surface substantially plane along the direction transverse the continuous drainage channels.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a flashing having channels trapezoidal in cross section, since channels of such conformation in a flashing of the present character possess special merit.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a flashing of the character described which can be formed from sheet metal in an expeditious and economical manner.

50 The attainment of these and other objects by the present invention will become apparent when the following detailed description of the preferred form of the invention is read in conjunction with an examination of the accompanying drawing wherein like numerals of reference in- 3 Claims. (01. 72-127) disate lik art in he ra v w and w e e- Fig. 1 is a fragmentary View, in perspective, of

a w l of a buil i howin t e ash in i u between eu sess nr s Fig. 2 is ,a transverse section of the flashing.

F s a lons t ins slsva on o the shi In the drawing, 1 designates the flashing'having substantially parallel continuous drainage ne ,2 a d s ont nu u n e ed c ann 3 in series, both types of channels being preferably trapezoidal in crosssection and being separated by the flat portions 4 of the flashing. Between the discontinuous inverted channels 3 lie the flat portions 5 of the flashing: the flat portions3 and the flat portions 5 of the flashing lie in a common plane surface. The flashing may be provided with edge portions which may be bent downwardly, as at 1, or upwardly, as at 8, the said edge portions being designed to control and di- 1 rect the discharge of water accumulating upon the upper surface of the flashing. The insertion of the flashing in a building wall is ,eifec'ted in the following manner: a layer of crnent'or mortar is spread upon a course of masonry, the flashing is laid thereon with the continuous drainage channels concave upward and oriented in the direction of intended drainage, the flashing is then pressed into the cement or mortar to an extent sufiicient to cause the continuous drainage channels to become embedded therein, to cause an appreciable flow of the cement or mortar up into the discontinuous inverted channels, and to impart to the flashing any desired inclination to promote drainage, a layer of cement or mortar is then spread upon the upper surface of the flashing, filling the continuous drainage channels, and finally, courses of masonry are built up on the flashing, the Weight of the courses of masonry serving to establish more intimate contact of the surfaces of the flashing with the cement or mortar.

When properly inserted in a building wall, the flashing exhibits the following characteristics: warping of the drainage surface of the flashing along the direction of drainage is impossible, due

, to the stiffening effect imparted to the flashing by the continuous drainage channels and, to a lesser extent, by the discontinuous inverted channels; movement of the flashing in a direction transverse to the direction of drainage is impossible due to the restraint of movement imposed upon the flashing by the coaction of the ridges of cement or mortar filling the continuous drainage channels and partially or completely filling the discontinuous inverted channels, and movement of the flashing in a direction parallel to the direction of drainage is impossible due to the restraint of movement imposed upon the flashing by the coaction of the convex surfaces of the discontinuous inverted channels and the superimposed layer of cement or mortar.

, Since the cement or mortar is forced up into the discontinuous inverted channels by pressure exerted upon the flashing, the discontinuous inverted channels are not infrequently but imperfectly filled, due to the entrapment of air in the positioning of the flashing upon and in the layer of cement or mortar. Moreover, in the setting of the cement or mortar, there may occur a slight shrinkage thereof, so that the discontinuous inverted channels are then filled to a degree slightly less than are the continuous drainage channels. It has been found that channels trapezoidal in cross section, and. in a less satisfactory manner and to a lesser degree, channels semicircular in cross section, will accommodate the slight changes in the areas of flashings, caused by the thermal expansion and contraction thereof, and the strains developed between the flashings and the cement or mortar, by changes in temperature, due to differences in the coefficients of expansion of the fiashings and the cement or mortar, especially if the discontinuous inverted channels are not wholly filled with cement or mortar.

The flashing herein described may be readily formed out of metal sheets by the use of suitably fashioned rolls, and thus, such flashing may be produced expeditiously and in an economical manner, Without the use of expensive equipment, in the average metal working shop.

What is claimed is:

1. A flashing comprising a flat continuous strip of sheet metal embodying therein a plurality of parallel continuous fiat-bottomed drainage channels, uniform in cross section throughout their lengths and spaced apart at sensible distances,

- and a plurality of discontinuous inverted flatamt-2a bottomed channels, uniform in cross section throughout substantially their lengths, arranged in series interposed between and parallel to adjacent pairs of the parallel continuous drainage channels, the fiat bottoms of the continuous drainage channels and of the discontinuous inverted channels being disposed, respectively, below and above the flat continuous strip of sheet metal in planes parallel thereto.

2. A flashing comprising a flat continuous strip of sheet metal embodying therein a plurality of parallel continuous flat-bottomed drainage channels, uniform in cross section throughout their lengths and spaced apart at sensible distances, and a plurality of discontinuous inverted flatbottomed channels, uniform in cross section throughout substantially their lengths, arranged in series interposed between and parallel to adjacent pairs of the parallel continuous drainage channels, the fiat bottoms of the continuous drainage channels and of the discontinuous inverted channels being of lesser widths than the mouths of their respective channels and being disposed, respectively, below and above the flat continuous strip of sheet metal in planes parallel thereto.

3. A flashing comprising a flat continuous strip of sheet metal embodying therein a plurality of parallel continuous flat-bottomed drainage channels, uniform in cross section throughout their lengths and spaced apart at sensible distances, and a plurality of discontinuous inverted flat bottomed channels, uniform in cross section throughout substantially their lengths, arranged in series interposed between and parallel to adjacent pairs of the parallel continuous drainage channels, at distances markedly greater than the widths of the parallel continuous drainage channels, the flat bottoms of the continuous drainage channels and of the discontinuous inverted channels being disposed, respectively, below and above the flat continuous strip of sheet metal in planes parallel thereto.

JOSEPH BLACHER. 

